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Luke Macaulay
The Hon. Luke John Stewart Macaulay, MP (b. May 16, 1963) is the immediate former Prime Minister of Georgeland, governing from 2007 to 2010. |+'Luke Macaulay' |- |- |'Position' || 26th Prime Minister of Georgeland |- |'Term in office' || July 6, 2007 - August 13, 2010 |- |'Preceded by' || Zoe Parker |- |'Succeeded by' || Lawrence Porter |- |'Political party' || Conservative |- |'Total time in office' || 3y, 1m, 7d |- |'Born' || 16th May 1963 |- |'Constituency' || Stevenson |- |'Spouse' || Alice Macaulay (married 1994) |} Early life and career Born in Emilypolis, Scoita, in 1963, Macaulay was educated at the University of Santa Christina where he became a friend of Campbell Rhodes. In 1982, Rhodes defeated Macaulay in student body elections, though Macaulay himself nevertheless played an active role in student politics. He and Rhodes remain firm friends to this day, despite their differing ideologies. A member of the Tory Party since he was 19, Macaulay studied economics and was a practicing accountant in the mid-1980s, before giving it up because, in his own words "I wasn't boring enough". Beginning in politics In 1987, Macaulay, aged 24, stood for the House of Commons seat of Smithfield against future Prime Minister Michael Elderton but lost. In 1991 he was defeated again for Smithfield, and following an electoral redistribution, stood for the seat of Stevenson in February 1995. He won, and has held the seat for the Conservatives ever since. In 2000, Macaulay was appointed to the Tory front bench by then-leader Benedict Ingram as Shadow Minister for the Arts, and was promoted by Mary Byrne to become Shadow Attorney General in 2001. In 2003, he stood for the party leadership on the resignation of Michael Fisch but was defeated by Richardson, who appointed him Shadow Minister for Finance and Manager of Opposition Business. Rise to the top In early 2004, Macaulay was appointed as Shadow Minister for Home Affairs. In October of that year, outspoken and controversial deputy leader Nick Sheridan resigned, and Macaulay was elected unopposed to replace him. He took Sheridan's Treasury portfolio as well. Macaulay hails from the Conservative party's moderate faction, and is considered the faction's unofficial leader. He has made several public statements conflicting with Tory policy, including reservations regarding the United States' invasion of Iraq. He has also stated he has no personal problem with gay marriage or abortion. Macaulay has been seen as a potential party leader and Prime Minister for some time. Supporters of Macaulay feel his youth and moderate image will be great electoral assets, as he is the very antithesis of the 'old, fat, boring, blustering Tory' image that has dogged the party for decades. Succession to leadership On April 16, 2006, Richardson suffered a massive heart attack and died in hospital an hour later. Macaulay, who had been attending the same function, accompanied Richardson in the ambulance and is therefore the last person, other than medical personnel, to see Richardson alive. Macaulay, as deputy, is now the acting Leader until a permanent replacement can be chosen. On April 25, Macaulay announced he would contest the leadership ballot, to be held on May 6. Leader of the Opposition Macaulay was elected by a margin of four votes, winning 80 out of 152 in the first ballot. Macaulay is the party's youngest leader to date, though he is less than a year younger than Michael Fisch was when he became leader. Shortly before his election, Macaulay announced he would end the party's official opposition to abortion, signalling a potential shift toward the centre for the Conservative Party. Macaulay ran on a joint ticket with Martin Higgins, who became the party's new Deputy Leader and Defence spokesman. 2007 election Macaulay entered the election campaign of 2007 as the overwhelming front-runner, with polls suggesting his party could win as many as twenty-five seats from the incumbent government. Macaulay appointed a campaign team on Monday, 22 May, 2007. The Conservative Party's campaign chairman was Bob Kane, MP, the Opposition Chief Whip. Notably, while Macaulay has moved his party's policy towards the centre, Kane represents the "old guard" of "dry" Conservatives. The choice was immediately attacked by the government, who claim it as evidence Macaulay is no different to his predecessors. Macaulay's Conservatives won 149 seats out of 265 at the election, a gain of 25 seats and a substantial victory against the incumbent Liberal Democrats. Prime Minister Zoe Parker conceded defeat on election night. Macaulay, in his victory speech, pledged to continue his modernisation and reform of the Conservative Party and not to betray the trust of the electors. Prime Minister 2007- On July 6, just less than a week after his election win, Macaulay was sworn in as Georgeland's 26th Prime Minister by President Lang at a ceremony at Martin Hall. He had named his Cabinet during the past week; the Cabinet was sworn in just after Macaulay. Key Cabinet appointments included Martin Higgins as Deputy Prime Minister, James Bradford as Treasurer and Stephen Hamer as Foreign Minister. Macaulay became the first Prime Minister since Victor Howard in 1970 to have never held ministerial office prior to his appointment. He is one of only three Prime Ministers of whom this is true. Macaulay's first significant act in office was the unveiling of a series of judicial reforms, to be put to Parliament in late 2007 and debated in the first 2008 sitting. The Judiciary Reform Act, tabled in August, provided for the appointment of judges by a special commission rather than direct nomination to the President by the Prime Minister. The legislation was hailed as long overdue by advocates of reform and by the Law Council. Macaulay had first touted the idea at a Law Council dinner in 2004. On 21st August, the government withdrew the appointments of a number of senior diplomats as part of its "purging" of the diplomatic corps. A week later, Macaulay toured flooded areas in Georgeland's Collins Valley after it was hit by severe flooding. He pledged a $400 million rescue package for the region. In the first Gallup poll commissioned since the election, Macaulay led new Opposition Leader Robin Sales by thirty points as Preferred Prime Minister on September 1. Macaulay's first major controversy began on October 11. Cabinet had voted the previous day to deploy 300 soldiers and support staff to Afghanistan to assist the NATO and U.S. effort against the Taliban. The deployment, made at a time when nations such as Canada were considering withdrawal, aroused significant controversy. Though Sales and the LDP supported the deployment, a poll suggested fully 54% of Georgelanders did not. Macaulay, in a speech to Parliament, promised to win the hearts and minds of Georgelanders over the deployment. "The Taliban are a threat to all nations, everywhere," Macaulay declared, "and we must combat that threat now, before we're forced to later." In the Conservative government's first budget, handed down on 1 November, 10% cuts to administrative costs were pledged within 10 years, and the National Education Service, of which Macaulay had been a long critic, was declared abolished. On 23rd November, Macaulay dismissed Assistant Treasurer Tony Billson after Billson was photographed giving money to call girls. Billson was replaced promptly by Rachel McGann and Macaulay was praised by the media for his leadership and prompt handling of the crisis. In December 2007, Macaulay announced $700 million in aid to the areas affected by Cyclone Melissa, which struck the northern Bradmarch coast. The same month, Macaulay broke with established Tory practice and declared the government would mediate a dispute between workers and management at Air Georgeland to prevent a national airline strike. On January 6, 2008. Macaulay celebrated six months in office with a gala dinner at The Residence. Among the attendees was Margaret Richardson, widow of Sam Richardson, who Macaulay regarded as "the best Prime Minister we never had". On April 1, Macaulay was falsely reported by a Sergiocitta radio station, 2GX, to have resigned after a falling-out with the Cabinet over Afghanistan. The report was later proven to be a hoax perpetrated by the station as an April Fools Day prank, but not before the story was picked up by a number of serious news organisations. Though Macaulay claimed he was ignorant of the whole affair, several members of staff in Macaulay's office, and Opposition Leader Robin Sales, were in on the joke. The story caused a slump in the stockmarket and panic within Topstad's civil service community before it was finally revealed as false. Macaulay's government initiated a range of reforms to Georgeland's public sector, and announced the privatisation of Georgeland Telecom, a major initiative which opponents regarded as potentially reducing rural telecommunications services. On February 25, 2009, Macaulay announced a $30 billion tax reform package, some of which would be incorporated in the next Budget, but the bulk of which would be distributed in the form of one-off bonuses to taxpayers. The package was in response to the developing global economic crisis, but was attacked by the opposition, who proposed a stimulus package. Macaulay Ministry Cabinet *'Deputy Prime Minister' and Minister for Foreign Affairs: Hon. Martin Higgins, MP Higgins replaced Stephen Hamer as Foreign Minister on Dec 1, 2009 *'Minister for Industry, Trade and Commerce' and Leader of the Government in the Senate:Sen. Hon. Roland Cossey Cossey replaced Hamer as Senate leader on Dec 1, 2009 *'Minister for Defence': and Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate: Sen. Hon. John Sutherland Sutherland replaced Higgins as Defence Minister and Cossey as deputy Senate leader on Dec 1, 2009 *'Treasurer: Hon. James Bradford, MP *'Minister for Health and Community Services': Sen. Hon. Rachel McGann ''McGann replaced Sutherland Dec 1 2009 *'Minister for Home Affairs and Administration': Hon. Roberta James, MP *'Minister for Finance and Economic Development': Hon. Michael Armstrong, MP *'Attorney General' and Minister for Justice: Hon. Nick Sheridan, MP *'Minister for Workplace Relations': Hon. Mary Byrne, MP *'Minister for the Environment and Resources': Hon. Madeline Woods, MP *'Minister for Social Security, Families and Veterans Affairs': Hon. Angela Nallern, MP *'Minister for Education, Employment and Training': Hon. Simon Berliner, MP *'Minister for the Arts, Communications and Information Technology' and Leader of the House of Commons: Hon. Bob Prior, MP *'Minister for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries': Hon. Mathieu Solberg, MP Outer Ministry *'Minister for Transport and Infrastructure' and Assistant Treasurer: Sen. Hon. John Ford *'Minister for Science and Technology': Sen. Hon. Julie Tutt *'Minister for Energy' and Manager of Government Senate Business: Sen. Hon. Geoff Hulskamp *'Minister for Climate Change': Hon. Jennifer Duggan-Wright, MP *'Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Population': Hon. Morgan Davis, MP *'Minister for Consumer Affairs and Small Business': Hon. Ursula McKinnon, MP *'Minister for Territories and the Federal District': Hon. Russell Chambers, MP *'Minister for Customs and the Coast Guard': Hon. Tom Fairweather, MP *'Minister for Sport, Tourism and Youth': Hon. Lisa Chan, MP *'Minister for Defence Industries': Hon. Kelly Anderton, MP *'Special Minister of State' and Deputy Manager of Government Senate business: Sen. Hon. Harry Thomson, MP Others *'Chief Whip': Hon. Bob Kane, MP *'Deputy Chief Whip': Sally Denny, MP *'Chief Senate Whip': Sen. Joan Haskett *'Deputy Chief Senate Whip': Sen. David Graham *'Whips': Sarah Smedley, MP, Alan Best, MP and Sen. Chris Price Personal life and religion Macaulay is a lapsed Presbytarian who does not regularly attend church and has said on occasion that he 'flirts with agnosticism'. Most Scoitan Tories are Roman Catholic - the minority Protestant population typically side with the non-Conservative parties. Macaulay has been an outspoken critic of the Catholic Church's 'stranglehold' on Conservative politics, particularly in his home state. Macaulay and his wife Alice have two children, Gerard (b. 1996) and Gwen (b. 1999), and reside in Emilypolis. Personality Macaulay: His Tory, a biography by Louis Mangle in 2007 revealed aspects of Macaulay's personality and demeanour in private and public through the media, interviews with family and friends, and observation of Macaulay himself. In the book, Mangle describes Macaulay as 'almost supernaturally amiable', and says that Macaulay almost never seems to lose his temper. "His voice is the levellest one I have ever seen," one quote says. The same biography describes Macaulay as 'soft spoken' and 'mild-mannered'. Macaulay apparently is also known in Conservative circles for never swearing (at least not outside his own home) and for a 'clean living' lifestyle - he has never smoked, and drinks alcohol only in moderation. An interview with Alice Macaulay in March 2007 revealed more information about Macaulay's character. Mrs. Macaulay said that he considers intolerance and prejudice to be "abhorrent". She also said that her husband can be considered somewhat of a practical joker, relating a story about Macaulay's university days in which he locked the Chancellor in his office and the fire brigade had to be called to release him. Campbell Rhodes, a close friend of Macaulay's despite their political differences, referred to this incident and others in his book Left Field, as well as an incident in which both he and Macaulay "kidnapped" a television as a political move. Trivia *As his name indicates, Macaulay is of Scottish ancestry. While his surname is Macaulay, his family have ties with the MacArthur clan through his paternal grandmother. *Supports Emilypolis Football Club *Speaks French, Latin and Russian *Is an amateur historian and archaeologist, with a speciality in the Roman Empire. *Macaulay is allergic to coffee, but not tea - he is subsequently a big tea drinker. *Favourite brand of beer: Salinger's Extra Dry *Macaulay is also fond of cooking, and has participated in several 'celebrity cook-offs' for TV, usually for charity. *Member of Amnesty International. *His favourite movie is Donnie Darko. *Fan of Tom Jones, Crosby, Stills and Nash, The Beatles and Emmylou Harris. *Admitted in a 2007 interview that he is a fan of Star Wars, Doctor Who and Battlestar Galactica Category:Georgeland Category:Georgeland politicians Category:Individuals